Receiving the Zen Precepts

The Mind of Clover (Aitken)
Waking Up to What You Do (Rizetto)
Being Upright (Anderson)
If You're Lucky, Your Heart Will Break (Ford)
The Heart of Being (Loori)

Recommended Books on the Precepts and Society

The Great Awakening (Loy)
The New Social Face of Buddhism (Jones)
Money Sex War Karma (Loy)
Pavement (Jensen)
Razor-Wire Dharma (Malone)

"Vast is the robe of liberation, a formless field of benefaction; I wear the Tathagata's teaching,saving all sentient beings."--from our liturgy book

The Precepts of skillful action are the moral and ethical teachings of the Zen Buddhist tradition. They're not rules to be followed, but suggestions on how to navigate the difficult and messy business of being human in this human world. They describe how to fully actualize the absolute truth of interconnection and oneness in the relative of world of this and that. Moreover, the Precepts are among the Buddha's clearest suggestions about how to find liberation right in the middle of our everyday lives.

The ceremony of formally receiving the precepts is called Jukai, and takes place twice a year. People who have received the Precepts wear a rakusu (pronounced "rock-su") during zazen, the black bib-like garment that is a miniaturized version of the Buddha's robe, the robe of liberation. In this ceremony, each person receiving the precepts has the opportunity to read a sentence or three about each of the sixteen precepts. In this way, the ceremony is extremely powerful, communal, and inspiring. If possible, you should attend at least one Jukai ceremony before receiving them yourself.

Receiving the Precepts is not something we do when we believe we will never act against them, but is itself an expression of our bodhisattva aspiration to return, again and again, to our intention to let Precepts guide our lives.

The process of aspiring to be guided by the precepts, falling short of our aspirations, and atoning for the harming karma we create is the essence of Zen. This three-part process (aspiring, falling short, and atoning) is the heart of practicing Zen in our everyday off-the-cushion lives.

If you're interested in taking the Precepts, you can inquire about this in dokusan with any of our transmitted teachers. Most people sew their rakusu themselves, and there are sangha members who can help with this, including by providing you with a kit to get started.

Description: <b>Turning Toward:</b><br><b>White People Working to Dismantle White Supremacy</b><br><br><b>WHO WE ARE:</b> A group for white-identifying dharma practitioners to hold each other accountable and encourage each other in doing the inner and outer work of dismantling racism and acting in alliance with people of color in a white supremacist society. Attendees have read at least one of the following three books: So You Want to Talk About Race (Ijeoma Oluo), Awakening Together (Larry Yang), or Mindful of Race (Ruth King). Because of the relational and intimate nature of this group's work, attendees are asked to commit to attending 4 once-monthly sessions.<br><br><b>WHEN YOU CAN JOIN: </b>We open to new members 3 times throughout the year. Our next open session will be in October/November 2019.<br><br>Rebecca Behizadeh, Josh Levin, and Liz Roemer are available to talk to anyone who would like to know more about the group.<br><br> <br>*****<br><br>MORE BACKGROUND ABOUT THE GROUP:<br><br>For the past several years, GBZC’s Racial and Social Justice Initiative has sponsored many different activities and events (https://bostonzen.org/greater-boston-zen-center/racial-social-justice-initiative/). Some of these events were a series of book group discussions that involved examining the impact of systemic racism and discrimination in our lives and our communities. As several of us learned from these authors of color, we decided to follow their advice to create a space for those of us who identify as white to use our practice to examine and challenge our socialization so that we can more effectively wake up to the nature of racism and its impact, and act skillfully, with awareness, to counter it. We invite others who are interested in such work to join us as we continue this process in the upcoming 4 session monthly group.

Description: GBZC member Leilani Diaz invites persons of color (POCs) to join her in this new, monthly sitting group held on the third Monday, 7-8:30 pm. This is an opportunity to cultivate a diverse community rooted in inclusivity, justice, and compassion. No RSVP required. <a href="https://bostonzen.org/events/poc-group/">More</a&gt;